


Forward Though I Cannot See

by historical_allusions



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Accidental Outing, Bitty/Leadership OTP, Fluff, Gen, M/M, Miscommunication, repercussions to coming out
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-01
Updated: 2018-08-01
Packaged: 2019-06-19 19:21:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,367
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15516810
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/historical_allusions/pseuds/historical_allusions
Summary: Some members of the Samwell Men's Hockey Team express concern when Whiskey stops coming to team events.  As Captain, it's Bitty responsibility to figure out what's wrong.  But when he starts to suspect his relationship with Jack is the issue, a confrontation is in order.  It just doesn't go exactly how he planned...





	Forward Though I Cannot See

“Hey, Bitty, do you have a second?” Dex asked from the entryway to the kitchen.

Bitty was mixing the filling for a blueberry crumble but he set his mixing bowl down and turned down his playlist when he heard the tone of Dex’s voice.  “Of course, what’s on your mind?”

The fall semester was just beginning to pick up and hockey season was picking up with it.  Dex and Nursey went through some initial growing pains living together but as far as Bitty knew, they got along well enough he shouldn’t have to intervene.  When they needed a third-party arbitrator, they normally went to Chowder.

“I’m worried about Whiskey,” Dex said.

That wasn’t what Bitty was expecting.

“Did something happen?”

Dex shifted his weight.  He’d waited until it was just him and Bitty in the Haus, probably for this reason.  “Not exactly,” he admitted.  “It isn’t one big thing.  More like, Whiskey doesn’t normally hang around the Haus, which is fine, but he’d at least be over here with Tango last year.  But I haven’t seen him around in weeks.  He doesn’t come to team brunch on the weekends.  Stuff like that.”

“I know everyone gets busy this time of year.  And Whiskey didn’t really hang out here last year anyway,” Bitty said, leaning on the counter.

Dex sighed and nodded.  “I know.  But he was here sometimes.  And after practice yesterday, a few of us were walking back together and Ford asked if Whiskey or Tango was going to try for dibs next year.  Tango seemed excited about maybe sharing the attic with Whiskey but Whiskey brushed it off.  He said something about living off campus with one of the Lax Bros.”

Bitty’s shuddered a bit.  “Those hooligans who live across the street?”

“I know!” Dex said, throwing his hands up.  “But this isn’t about the Lax Bros.  It’s about the fact Whiskey is the leading scorer on our team and leads the ECAC in assists but it doesn’t seem like he likes being on our team.  I’m just worried about him but he shuts me down every time I try to bring it up.  Do you think you could talk to him?”

Bitty was Team Captain and he knew that as Captain he’d have certain responsibilities like this.  He nodded and tried to give Dex a reassuring smile.  “Of course.  I’ll try to see if I can figure out what’s going on.”

Dex seemed convinced and smiled back at him.  “Thanks, Bitty.  I have to run to class but I really appreciate it.”

Bitty didn’t have class until later that afternoon and once the front door closed, Bitty was alone in the Haus to think over what Dex said.

In retrospect, Bitty probably should have realized sooner something was wrong.

Whiskey didn’t spend much time in the Haus but when he did, it was often working on homework in the kitchen.  Depite the Haus’ limited counter space, Bitty didn’t begrudge him the kitchen table because he knew how awful the wifi connection in the dorms could be and it wasn’t like the Haus had plenty of spaces quiet enough to study when it was too cold for the roof.  Whiskey first appeared in the kitchen with Tango, helping keep his teammate focused on his assignments.  Whiskey seemed to have a sixth sense for procrastination and would periodically kick Tango’s chair whenever his attention strayed from his homework.

Bitty also found Whiskey pressed shoulder to shoulder with Dex in the kitchen, working late into the night on assignments for his Intro to Computer Science course.  Bitty wasn’t sure what his major was, but coding seemed exceptionally hard for him, and Dex often worked through assignments with him line by line.

But that was last year.

Ever since the summer, Connor had been… distant.

Last year, Connor bought a Jack Zimmermann jersey the first day they went on sale.  Bitty watched him check his bag every ten minutes to make sure he packed it for the home opener when he knew Jack would be coming.

But since the start of the school year he’d been more withdrawn.  Keeping his distance from the others but especially from Bitty.  He didn’t even come over to watch the Falconers games like he used to.

The thing was, Bitty was pretty sure Connor liked the team.  He got along with the rest of the Frogs and even though he kept mostly to himself, he never had any problems with his teammates.  Last season, Bitty saw Connor leaning over the rentals counter at Faber to talk the rink scheduler into giving the team more ice time which he used this season to run speed drills with the Waffles.  He didn’t think the team was the problem.

Bitty sighed and put the filling for his blueberry crumble into the refrigerator for later.  He promised Dex he would at least try to work out what was going on with Connor but he was going to need a game plan first.

_X_

As far as Bitty knew, Connor only hung out consistently with two members of the team outside of practice—Tango and Ford—so he figured they were a good place to start.

Tango was easy to track down.  Bitty helped him move into the sophomore dorms at the beginning of the semester.  Samwell seemed to be the only college on the eastern seaboard not going through a housing crisis and there was sophomore housing available.  It wasn’t what Bitty would call homey, but the resident fee was cheaper than off-campus rent.

Bitty knocked on the door to Tango’s dorm, a plastic container of brownies under his arm.  Although the walls were made of cinder blocks, the door was thin enough he could hear Tango scrambling on the other side.

“Hi, Bitty, what are you doing here?” Tango asked when he came to the door.  Then he noticed the container Bitty was holding.  “Wow, brownies!  Are those for me?”

“Yep, extra almonds,” Bitty smiled, glancing inside to make sure he caught Tango when his roommate was out.

“I love almonds!”

“I know.  I even used almond flour for these,” Bitty smiled as Tango let him into his room.

“I didn’t know almonds flowered.”

It was… well it was a dorm room.  Bitty sent out a silent thanks to wherever Johnson was for giving him dibs freshman year so he could move into the Haus.  Bitty sat carefully on the swivel chair by Tango’s desk while Tango looked around for something to use as a plate.

_So help me God, do not hand me that frisbee._

“I brought napkins!” Bitty added brightly and Tango looked relieved.

“Thanks again for these, Bitty.  I know you like to make pie but you always make the best brownies and they always make my day,” Tango said with a genuine smile.

“You know, you’re always welcome by the Haus if you need a pick-me-up,” Bitty said, softening a little.  He remembered how busy sophomore year could be.  In many ways it was a bigger adjustment than freshman year.  Bitty finished his brownie and cleared his throat.  “I actually came over here hoping to could ask you something.”

“You want to… ask me a question?”

“Yes, Tango,” he said patiently.  “Is everything okay with Whiskey?  He hasn’t been around the Haus very much lately.”

Tango considered his question while he took another brownie from the dish Bitty brought.

“I don’t think anything is wrong,” Tango said eventually.  “He’s really focused on making playoffs, though.  I think he’s a little stressed about it.”

“Playoffs?  It isn’t even December,” Bitty blinked.

“Yeah, but he was so upset we didn’t make it last season.  He’s been dragging me and the Frogs to the gym on off days and he talked to Sean about getting us some more rink time.”

“Sean?”

“The rink scheduler,” Tango said.  “I’m sure you’ve seen him.  Red hair and glasses?  Whiskey tutors him in Spanish.”

“Okay,” Bitty nodded.  “But we were all busy last semester and Connor still would come by the Haus sometimes with you or the other Frogs.”

Tango looked confused which, granted, was often his default expression.  “Whiskey hangs out with the team.  We go to dinner with Foxtrot all the time.”

“That’s good to hear, but my point still stands about him coming by the Haus.  I don’t think he’s been to a team brunch since last season.”

“But team brunch is at ten-thirty,” Tango said, scratching his head.  “Whiskey goes to church at ten.”

Bitty didn’t know that and it must have shown on his face.

“Yeah.  St. Augustine, I think?  It’s kind of far away.  I think one of the Lax Bros drives him, Chad R.  Or Chad S?”

“Oh,” Bitty said weakly.  He was beginning to develop a theory as to why Connor wasn’t spending time around the Haus and it had less to do with the team than with Bitty specifically.

Tango looked back to Bitty.  “Do you think something’s wrong with Whiskey?  Should I talk to him about it?”

One of the many things Bitty loved about Tango was that he was too earnest to lie.  It didn’t sound like he was trying to cover for Connor or hide anything from Bitty and he was genuinely concerned for his friend.  Bitty gave him a soft smile but shook his head.

“Thank you for talking to me.  I know you two spend a lot of time together and I’m glad he has you watching his back,” Bitty said.  “I’m just checking up on some of the players so there’s nothing to worry about.  But can you do me a favor and not mention to Whiskey that I talked to you just yet?  I want a chance to speak with him first.”

“No problem, Bitty,” Tango said, picking up another brownie.

_X_

Ford was a little harder to pin down given her busy schedule.  Between managing the hockey team and pinch hitting for the local theater company’s stage management, Bitty wasn’t sure how Ford had time to sleep.

Bitty ended up offering to help her run errands and Ford seemed happy at the prospect of company and told Bitty to meet her at a store in town.

“I didn’t know Samwell had an entire store dedicated to yarn,” Bitty said, holding Ford’s basket while she perused the selection.  The muffins he brought her were tucked away in the side, ziplocked closed so the cranberries wouldn’t stain any purchases.

“Yeah, there’s a shockingly high number of craft stores around here.  This is my favorite one because they have really good prices and here!  Feel how soft this is!” she said, handing him a spool of thick maroon yarn.

Bitty laughed and added it to the basket.  “Is this for a project or something?”

“Not an official one.  I was thinking of making a chunky-knit blanket for the Haus but the yarn is a little more expensive and, well, I don’t want to spend time on it if it’ll just get ruined touching the couch.”

Ford was one of Bitty’s only allies in his mission to destroy the unholy abomination of a sofa that was the Haus couch.  Soon Shitty would be too preoccupied with law school to protect it all the way in Boston…

“It’s really nice to have you with me,” Ford said again, snapping him out of his revenge plot. “A lot of the other boys don’t have the patience for it and it’s nice to have company.  Don’t get me wrong, Whiskey and Tango are great but I can tell they get bored here.”

“It’s not a problem,” Bitty assured her.  He really only had his thesis waiting for him at the Haus and he wasn’t in any sort of rush to get back to that annotated bibliography.

“Well, as much as I like the company, is this a captain thing?” Ford asked, weighing two spools of yarn that looked to Bitty to be the exact same shade of blue.

“Sort of,” Bitty admitted.  “But we don’t have to talk about it now.  I’m fine to just pick out knitting stuff with you.”

“No, it’s okay, I don’t mind,” she assured him, putting one of the spools in the basket.

Bitty figured it would be better to get straight to the point with her.  “Now, you know I’m not one to start spreading rumors, but have you noticed anything off with Whiskey lately?”

Ford frowned and moved to another rack.  “In what way?” she asked.

“Well, he hasn’t been to the Haus lately and some of the guys are worried…”

“I’m sure he’s just busy,” she said, worrying and end of yarn in her fingers.  Bitty didn’t think she sounded convinced.

“Normally I’d agree with you, but just last Friday we had a Kegster the same time as the Lax House and I’m pretty sure he went to theirs instead of ours.”

“I know, but he still came over Saturday to help clean up,” Ford defended.

“From the Lax House,” Bitty said.  “Where he crashed after their party instead of staying at the Haus.”  Bitty sighed and ran a hand through his hair.  “I’m not saying Whiskey has to spend every waking moment of the day with us.  But I just want to make sure he feels welcome.”

“Bitty I’m pretty sure it’s nothing personal,” she said, putting the yarn back on the shelf.  “I can talk to him about going to more team events and things if you think it’ll help,” she offered.

But it wasn’t about Connor showing up to parties.  Bitty didn’t think the solution was forcing him to spend time with the team.  “No, that’s okay Ford, thank you,” he said instead.  “I’ll talk to him about it soon.”

_X_

“—And then Tater jumps and knocks over the entire display!” Jack said over their video call and Bitty dissolved into laughter, hugging his pillow tight to his chest.  It was getting pretty late and he didn’t want to keep anyone up.

“Oh honey,” Bitty laughed.  “That’s terrible!”

“I know, he felt really bad.  He tried to help clean it all up but I think they sent him away when he was just making it worse.  It’ll probably be in a Falconers TV video later this season.”

“I don’t know why your media department thought that Fear Box game would go over well.  Tater was always just going to reach inside regardless of how dangerous it could be,” Bitty smiled.

“Yeah, turns out it was the baby rabbit that got him because it moved,” Jack laughed again.  “So then when the table went over the rabbits scattered and we were chasing them around for ten minutes.  It’s all on film.”

Bitty dissolved into giggles again at the image of Tater and Jack trying to catch rabbits.  He couldn’t wait until he and Jack lived together and they could talk over dinner instead of over the computer.  Being together the whole summer and then parting during the school year was rough, but their frequent video calls made it a little easier.

“But that’s enough about my day, tell me how things at Samwell are going,” Jack said, settling back in bed and ready to listen to what Bitty.

Bitty ran through some basics about his day and Jack nodded along.  Bitty mentioned he was getting a little caught up on needing one or two more good sources for his annotated bibliography but he was trying to get it done early.  A long weekend in Providence was excellent incentive because Bitty didn’t want to waste a second of his time with Jack doing homework.

“Honey, can I ask you a Captain question?”

“Of course,” Jack nodded, looking at Bitty with his full attention.

“When you were Captain, how did you deal with problems on the team?”

Jack considered for a moment.  “Well, I suppose it depended on the problem.  Also, remember I wasn’t exactly known for being ‘pound sign chill’ during my tenure as Captain, even at Samwell.  Remember your first preseason, bud?”

Bitty sighed.  “I know.  It’s just, I’m still trying to work out what to do about one of our players, Connor Whisk,” Bitty admitted over the connection.

“The standoffish one?”

“Yes, you met him last season when you came to our home opener.  He asked you to sign his Zimmermann jersey,” Bitty said.

“Didn’t he drop gloves for you earlier this season too?”

“I mean, the bench cleared so technically everyone dropped gloves…” Bitty pointed out.

“And you already tried talking to his friends?” Jack asked and Bitty nodded.  “Was it any help?”

“Well, yes and no,” Bitty sighed.  “The friends he has on the team can’t think of any reason why he’s been distancing himself so much this year…” Bitty trailed off and worried the edge of his comforter.

“But you think you know why?” Jack prompted softly.

“It’s just, he was so excited when he found out you were coming to one of our games,” Bitty said.  “And after that he started coming by the Haus more and doing homework or helping Dex fix the roof, so I stopped worrying about it.  But since we came back from the summer, he’s been avoiding me.  Not the entire team, just me.”

“And you think it’s because of us coming out this summer,” Jack finished.  He reached his hand out to brush against the screen and Bitty wished again Jack could really be there with him.

Bitty didn’t say anything.  But he hugged his pillow a little tighter to his chest.  They knew there would be some backlash, but Bitty hadn’t expected it from his own team.  Gosh that was the way it had been in Madison, quiet disapproval.  Never outright hatred but just enough small things that it cut.

“Bits…” Jack started and Bitty sat up a little in his bed.  No, he wasn’t going to let it be like that again.  If Connor had a problem, he would deal with it.

“No, Jack, it’s okay,” he said.  “I mean, it’s not okay.  Obviously.  But I can handle it,” Bitty told him firmly.

Jack smiled softly back at him on screen.  “I love you.”

“As you rightfully should,” Bitty said, tilting his chin up.  Jack chuckled but yawned at the end of it.  “It’s getting late, sweet pea.  Maybe we should go to bed….”

Jack sighed off with a kiss and Bitty laid back in bed, thinking of what he would say to Connor.

_X_

In the morning, Bitty came to the conclusion he should give Connor the benefit of the doubt, at least to start off.  He didn’t have any solid confirmation Connor was avoiding him because of his and Jack’s relationship.

But dealing with whatever was going on with Connor wasn’t the only duty Bitty had as Captain.  He’d spent the week not only catching up with Tango and Ford but also talking to some Waffles about better managing their course loads and diffusing a brewing argument between Dex and Nursey and then trying to teach Chowder how to make a home cooked meal for his anniversary dinner with Farmer.

So, that weekend, Bitty decided to treat himself a little.

Instead of going to Murder Stop-and-Shop, he asked Nursey if he could borrow his Lexus and drove thirty minutes north to the Whole Foods for some high quality organic cocoa powder and some ethically sourced almond flour.  He may have gotten side tracked in the ecologically sustainable granola section as well.

The best part of going to Whole Foods (apart from the lowered risk of death) was that when all the groceries were loaded into Nursey’s car, Bitty could wait for his parking to expire out at the adorable coffee shop Blank Slate.  It was one of the only coffee shops far enough from campus that it rarely had any Samwell students in it so it was decently quiet.

And ever since Nursey starting making cold brew for the Haus, Bitty found he appreciated the higher quality coffee too.  After a hard week, he’d definitely earned a Blank Slate latte.

Bitty pushed open the heavy glass door and started to skim the chalk menu board but he stopped short when he saw who picking up a drink at the counter.  Connor Whisk balanced the mug in one hand while he shoved his wallet back into his bag with the other.  Bitty watched him move off to the side and take a seat at the back of the shop.

Bitty continued to the counter and ordered his coffee, opting for a to-go cup because his parking was almost up, before walking over to Connor.  There was an open seat across from him and Bitty eased into it for a quick chat.

“Hi,” he said and Connor glanced up at him.

“Bitty.”

“I didn’t know you came all the way out here to study,” he said but the book in Connor’s lap wasn’t a textbook.  It looked like a novel.  Connor shifted it away from him before he could catch the title.  “I was wondering if we could talk a little about--”

“Now really isn’t a good time,” he said, glancing toward the door.  “I’m meeting someone here.  We have to study.”

“Oh,” Bitty said.  It hadn’t really looked like Connor was saving the seat.

“We can talk at practice.”

“Well, a lot goes on at practice and it isn’t necessarily the best place to get to know one another,” Bity said.

“Then we’ll talk after.”

“Or we could just chat a bit.  Some of the guys—”

“I’m really not interested in talking right now,” Connor snapped.

Connor could be straight forward but he wasn’t often brusque and certainly not rude.  Bitty could feel his own hackles rise and he was about to respond when a tall redhead walked up to them.

“Sorry, parking was a nightmare,” the redhead said with a disarming smile and Connor jumped to his feet.  So he wasn’t lying about meeting someone to study.  “I swear, those Whole Foods people take all the good spots.  This guy wasn’t bothering you, was he, Whiskey?”

“Him?  No,” Connor said in a dismissive tone that Bitty took offense to.  Because he could definitely be bothersome if he wanted to be.  He wouldn’t choose to be, but that was beside the point.  “Danny, this is Eric Bittle, my team captain.  Bitty, this is Danny.  He’s on the lacrosse team.”

“Yeah, I think I’ve seen you around the hockey house,” Danny said, looking Bitty up and down but not extending his hand for a proper introduction.  “I didn’t know you were the Captain though.  Aren’t you—”

“He was just leaving,” Connor cut him off before Danny From The Lacrosse Team could finish his sentence.

 _Aren’t you a little small to be playing hockey?  Aren’t you that guy Connor won’t stop complaining about?  Aren’t you the kid who kissed some hockey player on national television last June?_   Bitty wasn’t sure which one was worse.

“We can talk after practice on Monday,” Connor said, keeping his voice low.  “We really need to work on this project.”

Bitty could tell when he wasn’t wanted and got up stiffly.  “Well.  Yes.  I’ll see you at Faber then,” he told him icily, walking towards the door with his head held high.

He was at the door when he heard Danny From The Lacrosse Team say, “That’s your captain, huh?  You weren’t kidding about him.”

_X_

Bitty was happy Connor didn’t come to Sunday brunch because Bitty spent the rest of the weekend fuming about their conversation at Blank Slate.  He didn’t know where Connor got the idea that it was acceptable to treat him like that, to brush him off and talk about him behind his back.  Being team meant that you had each other’s backs and you couldn’t pick and choose which parts of the team that meant.

Bitty called Jack no less than three times about it before Jack directed him to Shitty.  During their two-hour call, Shitty went on a rant comprehensive enough that Bitty was fairly sure he had enough talking points to face Connor after practice.

By Monday practice, most of the team could feel the tension in the air but they couldn’t figure out what caused it and it put everyone on edge.  Coach Hall and Coach Murray gave each other looks across the ice.  Connor seemed unaffected, though.  He treated it as a practice like any other.

Towards the end of practice, Connor skated over to him.  “We’re the last group booked for ice time tonight but they don’t Zamboni it until seven.  We can just come back out when everyone else leaves.”

It was the most Connor spoke to him since the summer started but Bitty just nodded curtly.  “Fine.”

Tango hovered near Connor, but when he asked if everything was okay, Connor shrugged him off.  Dex kept giving Bitty worried looks as well.  Once the practice finished, the team cleared out to the locker room and Bitty went with them.  He kept his skates out but otherwise packed the rest of his gear up while the guys talked about going to lift or grabbing dinner.  No one wanted to stick around longer than necessary.

When Bitty looked towards his stall, Connor was already out the door and heading back to the ice.  Bitty decided he could take his own sweet time getting ready.  When he finally went back out to the ice, Connor was skating easy circles in his jeans, pushing a puck around the empty ice.  He looked lost in thought and didn’t even glance at Bitty when he stepped out to join him.

“Connor, we need to talk,” Bitty said, doing his best to use his Captain voice.  He normally avoided it because it reminded him too much of how Coach sounded in the huddle but sometimes the situation called for it.

“Yeah,” Connor said, turning so he skated towards Bitty.  “Tango said you’re worried about me.”

Bitty should have known Tango would say something but he pressed on.  “Did he tell you what it was about?”

“No, just that you’re worried.  Which doesn’t make sense because I’m playing fine,” he said, taking a shot at the boards even though the goals had been put away with the rest of their equipment.

“It isn’t about how you’re playing.  It’s about how you are as a member of the team,” Bitty said, pinching the bridge of his nose.  He wasn’t good at staying angry, even when people deserved it.  “It doesn’t feel like you’re a part of the team and I’m trying to figure out why.  What happened?  You used to be at the Haus sometimes and I know you work with the Waffles, but you spend all your time with those awful Lax Bros now.”

“They’re not all awful,” Connor said, looking down at the ice while he got the puck back on his stick.

He didn’t sound detached or even defensive.  If anything, he looked embarrassed.  Which didn’t make sense because when Bitty saw him at the coffee shop he seemed flustered, even panicked.

Bitty skidded to a stop while several events slotted into place in his head.

“Oh my God,” he said.  “Sean, the rink scheduler.  Danny from the Lax Team.  _Dex!_ ” he said, putting it all together.

Connor’s head snapped towards him and he went pale.  “Bitty it isn’t what you think,” he started.  “Keep your voice down.”

One in four, maybe more…

But Bitty was still in awe, processing all of it.  “I thought you weren’t spending time with the team because you had a problem with me.  But that isn’t it at all.  Connor Whisk, _you have a type.”_  How many redheads did Samwell even have?

“Bitty, you can’t tell anyone,” Connor said, dropping his stick and taking him roughly by the shoulders.  “I’m not out.  _Danny isn’t out._   And—And—”

“I’m not going to tell anyone,” Bitty said, snapping back to the present.  He lifted his hands to settle on Connor’s shoulders.  “Of course I won’t tell anyone,” he said again, slower this time.  “I would never.”

Connor’s grip was still tight enough to be painful.  Bitty watched as Connor went from panic to fear to resignation.

“Danny’s team isn’t like ours,” he said softly.  “They don’t get stuff like this.”

Bitty had a lot to say about that but all he could think about was all the parties Whiskey stayed overnight at the Lax House.

“…That’s why you don’t want dibs,” he said, another realization dawning.  “It’s so you two can have your own place.”  Connor nodded and looked down at the ice, arms dropping to his sides.  “Does anyone else know?  Your family?  Friends?”

“Just you,” Whiskey said quietly.  “I know the team probably wouldn’t care.  They don’t care about you.  But…no.  It’s just you.  And Danny, I suppose,” he shrugged weakly.  “Please don’t tell them.”

“I won’t, but isn’t that lonely?” Bitty asked.  He remembered how it felt when none of their friends knew about him and Jack.  But even then, they knew Bitty was gay.  He didn’t have to hide that from them.

“It started getting serious over the summer.  I was thinking about telling Tango or Foxtrot,” he said.  “It just never feels like the right time.  And I don’t want it to change anything.”  Whiskey looked up at Bitty’s face.  “It isn’t going to change things between us, right?”

“I’m not going to treat you any differently than any other player on the team,” Bitty said.  Whiskey seemed to relax a little and finally exhaled.  “But can I give you a hug?”

Whiskey nodded and Bitty pulled him forward for a tight hug.  He was pleasantly surprised when Whiskey wrapped his arms around him and hugged back.  “I promise I’m not going to tell anyone if you don’t want me to, not even Jack,” Bitty confirmed for him and Whiskey relaxed a little more.  “All I’m going to say is that talking to your friends might be a good idea.”

“Okay,” Whiskey said, pulling back with a very slight smile.  “I mean.  Danny and I have been together about a year.  He wants me to tell some of my friends.  It might be nice having some other people know.”

“Honestly, they’ll probably be more upset he’s on the lacrosse team than anything,” Bitty said, returning his smile.  “That has to be, like, infinite fines.”

“I don’t know, I mean, it’s technically in the bylaws,” Whiskey, the corner of his mouth lifting in a slight smirk.

Bitty was confused for a moment before he remembered the drunken scrawl behind the water heater where Shitty wrote _#13 FUckk the Lax Team._

Bitty burst out laughing and Whiskey’s smirk turned into a proper smile.  “How long have you been waiting on that one?”

“About six months.”

“Okay, come on, it’s getting pretty late.  Let’s get out of here and go back to the Haus.  I have a slice of pie with your name on it,” Bity said, skating towards the bench beside him.

_X_

The next morning, Bitty sent off a few messages.  He had to let Jack and Shitty know he handled everything and it all turned out okay before Shitty stormed the Haus with a PowerPoint presentation on acceptance.  He also let Dex know he talked to Whiskey and there wasn’t anything to worry about.

Then he pulled up their group chat and typed out one more message on his way to class.

 **Me** : Hey ya’ll, just letting you know we’re going to be moving Sunday Brunch to 11:30 so everyone has a chance to attend!

 **Tony Tangredi** : If it’s at 11:30 isn’t that just lunch?

 **Derek Nurse** : Lol Tango doesn’t want brunch

 **Tony Tangredi** : That’s not what I said!

 **Derek Nurse** : Chill, it just means we can sleep in

 **Will Poindexter** : Brunch was at 10:30, we were already sleeping in!

 

Bitty rolled his eyes fondly as the group chat descended into an argument about what constituted the difference between brunch and lunch.  He was about to close the chat when a notification popped up at the top of his screen.

_Connor Whisk liked your message!_

Bitty smiled to himself.  It was a start.

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Danny From The Lacrosse Team didn't mean to offend Bitty, he was surprised how much Bitty looks like their captain Chad R! Title comes from the poem To a Mouse by Robert Burns.


End file.
